Historically, gaming consoles have been dedicated to devices that connect to a monitor and that allow a user to play a game stored on a game cartridge or disc that is inserted into the gaming console. Thus, the games available to a user were provided on gaming modules or optical discs that the user had to purchase and bring home. When a user wanted to play a game, the user had to insert the module or disc into the gaming console. The game would typically automatically start when it was inserted into the console. When the user desired to play a different game, the existing game had to be removed from the gaming console and the new game had to be inserted into the gaming console.
Traditionally, gaming consoles had also been isolated from other devices other than a television monitor. As such, they were not viewed as devices that could be networked.
This changed with the introduction of the MICROSOFT® XBOX® gaming console which provided network connectivity for the gaming console. To take advantage of this network connectivity, MICROSOFT® introduced a gaming disc known as MICROSOFT® Arcade, which was able to connect to a server through the Internet when the gaming console was connected to the Internet. The server site that the Arcade disc could reach was dedicated to XBOX® consoles that were executing the Arcade application stored on the Arcade disc. As such, other devices could not reach this server site, and further, XBOX® consoles that did not have the Arcade gaming disc running could not reach the server site.
MICROSOFT® eventually released a newer version of their gaming console called the XBOX 360®, which also provided support for network connectivity. MICROSOFT® directly integrated Arcade functionality into the XBOX 360® gaming console. Thus, users gained the ability to reach the server site and access Arcade functionality without having to install a dedicated Arcade gaming disc. Currently, the XBOX 360® gaming console is the latest available version of a gaming console in the XBOX® product category.
From the server site, the Arcade components integrated into the XBOX 360® gaming console are able to enumerate full version games that are stored on the server and that can be downloaded to the user's hard disc drive on the XBOX 360® console. The XBOX 360® supports the display of games that are available on the server, with games that have not previously been downloaded being displayed in a different manner than games that have been downloaded. By selecting one of the games that has not been downloaded, the user is able to download the game onto their hard disc drive for a fee.
MICROSOFT® XBOX LIVE® Arcade was the first service to introduce a “try before you buy” sales model in the console gaming industry. In accordance with this model, a user can download and play a limited portion of a game for little or no fee, and then subsequently convert to a full version for a fee when and if desired. This sales model was introduced in association with the XBOX® console and was also included within the Arcade platform associated with the XBOX 360® console. These experiences have shown that it is desirable, at least based on a goal of increasing sales revenue, to employ effective means for driving higher trial downloads and conversion rates to the full version of each game. For users who wished to try, or buy, the very latest games it has traditionally been necessary for such users to periodically check the list of new games in the XBOX® available on the server.
This requires repeated input and/or interaction from the user, and may limit the degree to which users seek and obtain new content from the server.
The discussion above is merely provided for general background information and is not intended for use as an aid in determining the scope of the claimed subject matter.